Tag Archives: American IPA

Firewater India Pale Ale

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catawba-firewater-ipa

Firewater IPA is a product of local North Carolina brewer, Catawba Brewing Company. It is what they call an “East Coast IPA” which is their interpretation of a an IPA using six varieties of British hops, and six different malts, including wheat and five barley malts. This all leads to a relatively mild, balanced IPA that has the appropriate hoppy characteristics but that is also still relatively understated. The nose is floral and slightly bready. The middle has a bit of very mild lemon citrus and a dry wheat backbone. There isn’t much new in the finish. A bit more lemon, but it’s pretty simple. The alcohol is fairly average as well, at 6.0% ABV.  All in all, this is a nice interpretation of an milder IPA, but nothing particularly stands out.

I give it a 3.5 out of 5.

No-Li Born & Raised IPA

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No-Li Brewhouse has been around for awhile in their home territory of Spokane, Washington, but I’ve only seen them recently hit the shelves here in Charlotte, and though I’d give a couple of their brews a whirl. The first I’m tasting is Born & Raised IPA, a dry-hopped American IPA with a big balanced flavor. The head is meringue-like and sticks around, and the malts play a big role in the nose with raisins and prune notes in addition to a some citrus from the hops. The middle has a blast of orange and toffee and the finish has a bit of pine and more citrus. The body is medium and the alcohol is a generous 7.0% ABV. This is an IPA that isn’t overly bitter, so it may appeal to some folks who aren’t generally IPA fans. It is a big beer though, with a lot of body and flavor, not a typical summer lightweight.

I give it a 4 out of 5.

Sierra Nevada Torpedo Extra IPA

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I was sure I had reviewed Torpedo Extra IPA at some point in the past, until I looked back through the archive, and realized that I hadn’t. So here goes. When Sierra Nevada first released Torpedo Extra IPA a few years ago, it showed up on the shelves of my local store and I decided to pick up a six-pack and try it out. Sierra Nevada makes good beer, but I honestly wasn’t expecting anything more than a run-of-the-mill me-too IPA. I was wrong. This is an excellent, hop-forward, full-bodied American IPA and it was immediately added to my regular rotation list where it remained for a year or more. It pours a dark gold, with a nice thick head. The scent is of grapefruit, pine, and honey. The middle is heavy with citrus, both grapefruit and orange. The finish is a bit bready, with a little more sweet orange and bitter rind right at the tail. It’s a pretty substantial beer at 7.2% ABV, but it hides it fairly well. Since the first time I tasted it, this has been one of my favorite every day American IPAs.

I give it a 4.6 out of 5.

Dogfish Head Sixty-One

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Lest the poor quality of my photography deceive you, let me assure you that yes, this is yet another pink (or at least pink-ish) beer. After a string of malt-forward reviews, we’re back to an IPA today. An unusual IPA, as one has grown to expect from the off-centered folks at the Dogfish Head Craft Brewery. In this specific case, it’s another beer/wine hybrid, as this is Dogfish Head’s signature 60 Minute IPA but it has been brewed with the addition of Syrah grape must. The nose is piney with a bit of yeast. The middle is tart, and the grapes have a significant presence. Citrus also comes to the fore here, predominately grapefruit. The finish is more of the same. There is a bit of citrus sugar and grape sweetening it up, and some rind and pine bitterness balancing it out. For all the sweetness, the finish is also quite dry. This is a not an every day brew, but it’s definitely a fun interpretation of the IPA and well executed.

I give it a 4 out of 5.

SweetWater IPA

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A few weeks ago I reviewed SweetWater’s seasonal Whiplash White IPA, and today I’m having their year-round American IPA. It’s unfiltered, so in the glass it’s a beautiful cloudy copper with a nice tight dense foam head. The nose is bursting with grapefruit and pine and promises of hops to come. The middle is packed with flavor, hoppy, but the bitterness balanced with sweetness. To that effect, all the grapefruit notes are here, sugary sweet grapefruit juice balanced by bitter rind. The malt is mellowed by the use of some wheat, so this is really definitely a hop-forward beer. In the finish the are orange, a little pine, some distant spice and brown sugar, drying out right at the very end.The body is prototypically medium and the alcohol level is moderate at 6.3% ABV. Overall, a really nice IPA.

I give it a 4.5 out of 5.

Lagunitas Maximus

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lagunitas-maximus

 

Maximus by Lagunitas is, as they say, “a bigger, badder version of our favorite style.” That means a super-hoppy IPA, and it’s really more of an Imperial IPA. It’s west-coast-ish, but there isn’t a ton of pine…Just a bit in the finish. The head is sticky and heavy, and dissipates moderately quickly. The nose has grapefruit and honeysuckle. The middle has big sweet grapefruit and orange notes, fighting some bitter burnt toast and herbs. The finish has the aforementioned bit of pine and more sweet orange. The sweet and bitter notes in this beer aren’t so much balanced as they are both simply strongly present. The flavors are all fine and nice, but the strength of the different flavors, and their lack of cohesion means that this isn’t going to be a session beer. Not that the the alcohol level (8.2% ABV) would allow it to be a session beer in any case. I like it, but I don’t love it.

I give it 3.9 out of 5.

SweetWater Whiplash White IPA

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Whiplash is a spring winter* seasonal from SweetWater Brewing Company in Georgia that starts with a Belgian White Ale using Belgian yeast and wheat, then adds oats to further smooth out the malt flavor and loads of American hops to create a unique twist on an IPA. The nose is grassy, with a little bit of lemon. The middle has a generic citrus flavor that leans toward grapefruit and some sweetness from the oats. The finish has a good bit of orange, some pine, and is slightly metallic right at the end. The body is medium, with a nice weight added by the oats, and the alcohol is moderate at 6.2% ABV. This is a fun combination of a couple of really tasty styles, and I’m enjoying it quite a bit.

I give it a 4.4 out of 5.

* I was informed via Twitter by the fine folks from SweetWater that this is actually a winter, not spring seasonal.   I thought I was done with the winter seasonals.  I was wrong.  Again.

Stochasticity Project Grapefruit Slam IPA

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A slam it’s called, and a slam it is. Stone Brewing Co. from San Diego, California is the brainchild behind the Stochasticity Project and its inaugural beer, Grapefruit Slam IPA, and that isn’t terribly surprising because this beer is crazy. Stone’s known for their bitter west coast style IPAs, sometimes taken to extremes in beers like Ruination, and one thing west-coast style IPAs are known for is a large helping of grapefruit flavors. So, the fine folks at Stone though something along these lines: “Hey, what would happen if we took a big west-coast IPA, and added about a trillion metric tons of grapefruit zest to it?” The answer, as you might suspect, is Grapefruit Slam IPA. They don’t specify exactly how much grapefruit zest they add…Just that it’s a lot. The bottle is non-specific in its note that added is “an immense dosing of grapefruit peel.” Now on to the specifics. The coloration is a bright golden amber, slightly cloudy. The head is dense and sticky. The nose smells like a bag of grapefruits dragged through pine resin. The middle is bitter, the grapefruit rinds ensure that, but this is not a one note beer. All the typical imperial west-coast IPA flavors are here. Not only the bitterness of the rind, but tons of sweet grapefruit sugars reminding me of a Texas ruby red, as well as a bit of pine that’s fairly muted, not by its absence but by the sheer volume of the other flavors at play here. The pine comes more to the fore in a very dry finish, along with plenty of additional grapefruit rind and some warming alcohol. The body is medium-heavy and the alcohol is a big but manageable 8.2% ABV. If you’re not a fan of bitter IPAs, you’re not going to like this beer, I can promise you. I, however, do, and I have a particularly fondness for grapefruit, and I think that it’s absolutely fantastic. Crazy, perhaps, and out of mainstream for certain, but wonderful.

I give it a 4.7 out of 5.

Green Flash Palate Wrecker Hamilton’s Ale

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Palate Wrecker is a big West Coast style IPA that was originally brewed for Hamilton’s Tavern and has clearly been influenced by Stone’s Ruination. (So called because it “ruins” your palate.) It’s an Imperial IPA, so big on flavor, body, and alcohol. The head is creamy and the nose has a ton of grapefruit, grass, and some pine. The middle is heavy and sits on your tongue, imparting flavors of grapefruit, lemon, and honey. The finish explodes with pine, a bit of grapefruit rind, and some booziness from the alcohol. (9.5% ABV) This may be the purest Imperial variant of the West Coast style IPA that I’ve had, and for all the marketing around the 100+ IBU score for this beer, it isn’t anywhere near as strongly and ruinously bitter as Ruination is. I love the west coast style and to me, this is a truly outstanding beer.

I give it a 4.8 out of 5.

Samuel Adams Juniper IPA

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A new winter seasonal for this year, Juniper IPA is exactly as it sounds: An American IPA with the addition of Juniper berries to give some additional flavor. I like IPAs, and I like juniper, (well, I like gin anyway, which is the same thing as liking juniper) so what could go wrong? Not much, it turns out. This is a nice, classic IPA, and juniper gives it a bit of a west-coast piney twist and a bit of pepper. It’s pretty highly carbonated, which comes off as refreshing. The tasting notes on the bottle claim that the juniper adds “a slightly sweet, piney character” but I really don’t find any sweetness here at all, just pine and spice. To me, that’s not a bad thing, but this is definitely a hop forward beer, so it’s going to be closer to the wheelhouse for IPA fans than for those looking for a sweeter winter treat. There’s also a bit of citrus in the middle, some lemon and some oraange, as you’d expect from an IPA. It has a medium to heavy body, but it’s pretty light on the alcohol at 5.8% ABV, so it’s an easy drinker. I’m really quite impressed with this brew. I think the folks at the Boston Beer Company have a hit with this one.

I give it a 4.3 out of 5.